


Reliability

by Loremaiden



Category: Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms, Sherlock Holmes - Arthur Conan Doyle
Genre: Community: watsons_woes, Gen, Prompt Fic, Story: The Adventure of the Crooked Man
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-18
Updated: 2016-07-18
Packaged: 2018-07-25 08:16:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 243
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7525165
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Loremaiden/pseuds/Loremaiden
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>His Boswell is not the only man Holmes relied on.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Reliability

**Author's Note:**

> Written in response to JWP 2016 #18 (Handwritten) on Watson's Woes.
> 
> "Handwritten" by The Gaslight Anthem: _And with this pen, I thee wed/From my heart to your distress_

During Watson’s marriage, I missed my Boswell’s company fiercely, and never more so than after a shared case had concluded. Mrs. Watson was more accommodating with her husband’s time than I thought she would be, and Watson was always game when he was free, but it was not the same. I had come to depend on him to stave off the ennui that was so hateful to me, and without his constant presence in the rooms we once shared, I relied on the work more than ever. And when that could not be relied upon...

Once I had solved the mystery of Colonel Barclay’s death and returned my friend back to his home and wife, I could already sense that dreaded boredom dogging my steps back to Baker Street. The crook of my arm began to itch, and I scratched it in irritation. Even my seven-percent solution had lost its appeal, slowly but surely falling short of clearing away the cobwebs being spun in my brain-attic. In my aggravation, I had nearly decided to ignore the letter that awaited me on the mantelpiece--a mistake that I am glad I did not make, for it introduced me to the most rewarding challenge of my career.

...After all that Professor Moriarty has cost us, I am not so cruel as to admit this to Watson; but I will always be grateful to the man who truly never failed me during those dark, lonely days.


End file.
